David Graves

It's hard to miss a guy who is 6-feet-6-inches and weighs close to 200 pounds. It's hard to overlook an honorable mention high school All-American and a three-time All-State selection in basketball-mad Kentucky who was a finalist in that state's Mr. Basketball voting. Four years ago, however, many Division I coaches did just that, passing by a senior at Lexington Catholic named David Graves because they thought he was too slow to play major college basketball. Four years later Graves is...

The celebration was doubled Saturday night for Mike Brey. "I was probably going to have a beer anyway," Brey said. "But I may have two now." Because as it turned out, Brey had more to celebrate Saturday than just his 44th birthday. Brey was finally tasting as a head coach what he had sampled countless times as an assistant at Duke in the late 1980s and early '90s--the Sweet Sixteen. Notre Dame's 68-60 victory over Illinois earned it a trip to Anaheim, the program's first foray...

- On Page 5 of Wednesday's Sports section, Notre Dame basketball player David Graves was misidentified as Martin Ingelsby (the name as published has been corrected in this text). - A story in TribWest editions Wednesday incorrectly reported that Batavia Police Cmdr. John Albertson, a 25-year veteran, had resigned. He said he is considering retiring in a few months but has not resigned, as the city indicated. The Tribune regrets the errors.

When nobody else could stop him, his brother persisted. When nobody else could challenge him, his brother refused to relent. When he took a path no one else had trod, his brother was close on his heels, pushing him. For Notre Dame senior shooting guard Matt Carroll, the toughest competition always came in his backyard. "We went head-to-head, one-on-one, just never backing down," the 6-foot-6-inch, 212-pound Carroll said of his driveway battles with younger brother Pat, a sophomore forward...

A 31-year-old Schaumburg man died of hypothermia Sunday when a snowmobile he was riding across a Wisconsin lake fell through thin ice, police said. Paul Madej was pronounced dead in Ft. Atkinson Memorial Hospital in nearby Ft. Atkinson, said Walworth County sheriff's deputy David Graves. Madej was riding across Whitewater Lake with a friend, Gary Wojtowicz, 32, of Mt. Prospect, when Wojtowicz saw Madej's snowmobile break through the ice. Wojtowicz pulled Madej from the water, but the ice, which...

He does his work in a gymnasium, not under a tent set up in an empty field. But since DePaul began practice in October, coach Dave Leitao regularly has recalled a revivalist preacher at work saving souls and pointing out the way to salvation. He has pushed and prodded, cajoled and encouraged, screamed and taught and offered up visions of a better way to a Blue Demons program desperately seeking resurrection. "We have worked our behinds off for two months," he explains, "to get to the point where we...

His run started quietly, on a pass from Chris Thomas that he dunked for his first points. Two minutes later, another dunk, this one on a feed from Torrian Jones. Then, a display of his diversity--a lay-up, a 20-foot rainbow, an 8-foot jumper in the lane. Thomas scored more points, leading Notre Dame with 22. Harold Swanagan matched his rebound total of eight. But no one played more efficiently or passionately Monday night than junior Irish reserve forward Jere Macura, who collected...

At some point, coming back became impractical. The Weber High School senior who led the Catholic League in scoring had moved on. The kid who grew up following Notre Dame had enriched his own school's basketball legacy to the point it rivaled the storied football of the Fighting Irish. "I think he has a special spot in his heart for Notre Dame, being a Chicago Catholic League guy," Irish coach Mike Brey said. "At one time, early in his career when he was [coaching] at Army, [Notre Dame]

Notre Dame forward Troy Murphy sprained his left ankle in practice and will be sidelined two to five weeks, which could leave the Fighting Irish without their top scorer and rebounder for up to nine games. Murphy, a 6-foot-9-inch freshman, has started all 17 games for the Irish this season, averaging 18.2 points and 8.9 rebounds. He leads all Big East rookies in scoring and is ranked sixth nationally in freshman scoring. The injury occurred in practice Thursday when Murphy came down on...

Notre Dame owns several NCAA tournament records. Irish guard Austin Carr scored 61 points in 1970 against Ohio, the single-game high. His 25 baskets and 44 attempts both remain benchmarks. In 1958, the Irish notched a record 86 rebounds against Tennessee Tech. Those records, though, are ancient history, feats accomplished before any of the current Irish players were born. In more recent times, Notre Dame has faltered. For a decade--from 1991 through 2000--Notre Dame couldn't set any...

Buffalo Sabres captain Pat LaFontaine, trying to come back from a serious head injury, might be headed to the New York Rangers, according to several sources. The 32-year-old center arrived in Buffalo in 1992 in a trade with the New York Islanders. "Talks continue," Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier confirmed Tuesday night during Buffalo's exhibition game at Toronto. - The Wolves won their first exhibition game in three tries, defeating the Milwaukee Admirals 5-4 at Fond du Lac, Wis. ...

Working without a map, Notre Dame waded into foreign territory Friday night, when it battled Connecticut for the right to play in Saturday's Big East tournament championship game. In its first six years in the conference, Notre Dame had won only one game in the Big East tournament. The Irish matched that total Thursday in their quarterfinal victory over St. John's. They wouldn't be able to exceed it Friday. The Irish had never before played in a Big East game in which the stakes were so...

Maybe, just maybe, Notre Dame's players were working a little too hard, trying a bit too much, pushing themselves too far. That's because as they prepare to take on Seton Hall (10-8, 3-3 Big East) Saturday at the Joyce Center, all their hard work has bought the Irish (12-6, 2-3) is a three-game home-court losing streak, their longest since the 1993-94 season. "With this group, they can tie themselves in knots because they want it too bad," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. "You have no...

It's hard to miss a guy who is 6-feet-6-inches and weighs close to 200 pounds. It's hard to overlook an honorable mention high school All-American and a three-time All-State selection in basketball-mad Kentucky who was a finalist in that state's Mr. Basketball voting. Four years ago, however, many Division I coaches did just that, passing by a senior at Lexington Catholic named David Graves because they thought he was too slow to play major college basketball. Four years later Graves is...

Dribble, turn, shift, shoot. Dribble, turn, shift, shoot. Dribble, turn, shift, shoot . . . Seems pretty basic, but coming from the mouth of then-Kentucky coach Rick Pitino, the lessons were priceless. David Graves was just 11 at the time, a Lexington, Ky., boy who had gotten the ultimate one-on-one coaching session. "I'm on the court outside and [Pitino was] coming out after practice and just teaching me moves and what I could do better," Graves said. "I was out there for three hours doing...

Looking at the box score, you would have no idea of his impact. In seven minutes of play St. John's center Curtis Johnson scored no points, took no shots, picked up no assists and attempted no free throws. The string of zeros next to his name in the box score were broken only by one rebound, one block and four fouls. But despite limited mobility and non-existent offense, the 7-foot-3-inch, 330-pound Johnson is as impregnable as a fortress. "He just took up a lot of space," Notre Dame...

A funny thing happened when David Graves visited a certain well-known football school in South Bend, Ind., two months ago. Graves was in the stands at Notre Dame Stadium, watching the Irish get pummeled by Michigan State, when a few undergrads realized Graves was an Irish basketball recruit. "A bunch of them said they were already looking forward to hoops season," Graves said. Now that Graves and two other highly regarded prospects have signed national...

The blazing start? Just a tease. The early 10-point lead? A short-lived feat. It's not that Notre Dame didn't have its chances Thursday night against Rutgers at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. It's just that finally, five days after suriviving a four-overtime thriller against Georgetown seemingly without breaking a sweat, fatigue seemed the catch up the with the Irish. The frenetic pace of Rutgers (16-8, 6-5 in the Big East) proved to be too much for Notre Dame (17-7, 7-4)

Naperville North's soccer team takes great pride in shutting out opponents. And the sixth-ranked Huskies were a proud bunch after shutting down West Chicago 3-0 Tuesday. "Our defense played a great game," said coach Dave Bucher. "Tonight was a combination of good defense and great goaltending. The guys take a lot of pride in shutouts, especially against good teams like West Chicago." Goalie Kip Lass made nine saves as he recorded his sixth shutout of the season. Naperville...

David Graves was in so much pain when he woke Wednesday morning that it took him 25 minutes to get from his bed to the bathroom. He had spent the night in the infirmary, getting treatment on his back he had sprained the previous day in practice. "I was in the worst pain in my life," Graves said. "It was bad. It was really bad. It just felt like I had no hope." But after treatment, ice packs and heat packs, Graves, bad back and all, helped his Notre Dame teammates to put the hurt on Rutgers,...